Polaroids
by unchartedplots
Summary: Bella finds one of Edward's displayed Polaroids. He then leaves post-its to lead her to his other Polaroids. All Human. Oneshot. Review!


_**Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight**_

**Polaroids**

Bella POV

I was unable to hold in my excitement at the thought of purchasing a new copy of Wuthering Heights. It seems that I have read my copy too many times, until it eventually became torn and tattered. Without hesitation, I had decided to purchase the new copy at my favorite bookstore, Unraveled.

Unraveled was well-hidden by the buildings surrounding it that very few people knew about it. This worked in favor for me as it would very rarely be crowded. Unraveled was where I found peace. It was one of my favorite places; my haven.

When I turned at the bend of the pathway, Unraveled came into view and I was engulfed by a blanket of comfort due the familiarity of the place. I briskly walked up to its front door and reached out to push the door open. However, I immediately stopped myself when I saw a Polaroid taped onto it.

Intrigued, I looked at it up close and it depicted, in black and white, a cliff with a figure standing at the edge of the rocks; preparing to dive into the waters. Written with black permanent marker in an elegant handwriting at the bottom of the frame of the Polaroid were the words 'Take chances' while yesterday's date, 16 June 2010, was written at the bottom right-hand corner. I spotted the initials E.M written on it, above the date.

I sucked in a breath as I stared at the Polaroid. It spoke volumes. I have always lived my life without taking any risks. Because of that, Mom always tried to convince me to live life to the fullest by taking chances. But I never did. Sometimes, I regret not taking her advice to heart as I felt that I was missing out on some things.

Wanting to know what the initials stood for, I tore my eyes away from the Polaroid. I pushed the door open and entered Unraveled. I shuffled my feet over to the cashier where its owner, a friendly-looking elderly lady, stood. She was organizing a pile of books on the counter. But as I stood before the lady, she looked up from her work and gave me a warm smile.

"Uh, do you know who the photographer of that Polaroid is?" I asked her while pointing to it.

She shook her head at me, "I'm afraid not, dear. He came in yesterday morning to ask me permission to tape that Polaroid of his. He said it was in hopes of improving the community. I agreed immediately once I saw it. That Polaroid was a beautiful piece of work."

I sighed in disappointment. "It's alright. But do you know where I can find anymore of his works?" I asked, eager to discover more of his treasures. Once again, the lady shook her head. I thanked her anyway.

Hurriedly, I headed over to the Classics section in the bookstore. I happily picked up a copy of Wuthering Heights and headed to the cashier to pay for it. I thanked the lady again. While walking towards the front door, I placed the book in my backpack. I straightened myself up as I pulled the door open.

My eyes grew wide at the sight that greeted me. Next to the Polaroid taped onto the door was a post-it. Written on it in the same elegant handwriting as the words on the Polaroid was the word 'Voices' and an address written below it. I figured that Voices was the name of a place and its address was as written on the post-it. I looked around, hoping to catch the photographer. No one was in sight. I frowned slightly but brightened up when I realized that the post-it could perhaps lead me to him. I headed to the main road with it in hand and hailed a cab. I showed the address on the post-it to the cab driver and he nodded at me before driving off.

Edward POV

I made my way to Unraveled, one of my favorite places, to check if The Rescue by Nicholas Sparks was in stock yet. Just as I was about to stride over to the bookstore, I skidded to a halt. I saw a girl standing in front of the front door, leaning forward slightly. I watched in surprise as I realized that she was staring at my Polaroid. The girl stared at it for a few minutes, while I watched her in fascination. She was the first person to notice my work. From my observations yesterday, other people had not given my work a second glance. And this just further proved my point.

My point being that most people do not appreciate the little things in life. As a photographer, I notice the small details around me which most are usually not aware of. Everyone is always on the move. Most people usually take things for granted. I wanted to change that. I did not want anyone to be blinded from the beauty of the world around them.

Suddenly, an idea popped up in my head. I fumbled around in my backpack for my Polaroid camera and hastily snapped a picture of the girl taking in my work with awe apparent on her face. I kept the Polaroid safely in my backpack.

When she finally entered Unraveled, I followed suit. Not wanting to waste any more time, I turned to head to the cashier. Coincidentally, the girl was already standing there. I stood some distance behind her to wait for my turn and was stunned when she asked the owner of the bookstore about my Polaroid. I suddenly felt relieved that I had decided to wear my baseball cap today such that the owner was unable to recognize me. As the girl turned away from the cashier, I was once again stunned that she looked rather disappointed. I did not realize that she was that interested in my work.

On the spur of the moment, I rummaged through my bag for a post-it and pen. I quickly wrote down the name of one of my favorite music stores, Voices, where another one of my Polaroids was displayed and its address. I exited Unraveled and pasted the post-it on the door, next to the Polaroid taped onto it. Not wanting to get caught, I jogged to my car, a Volvo, and drove to Voices. I hoped the girl would read the post-it and head there as well.

I exited my Volvo and walked up to the front entrance of Voices, all the while looking around in case she had already arrived here. I wrote down the street name of the park, where another one of my Polaroids can be found, on another piece of post-it. I then pasted it onto the front door of Voices, next to the Polaroid taped there. I discreetly stood behind a pillar next to the store and hoped for the arrival of the girl.

Bella POV

"We're here," the driver announced to me.

"Would you mind waiting for me for a few minutes as I'll still be in need of a ride?" I asked him hopefully. The driver nodded at me through the rear view mirror of his cab.

I thanked him before rushing out of the vehicle. I looked up and saw a sign that read 'Voices'. It sat above a music store that seemed to give off the same peaceful aura as Unraveled. As I predicted, a Polaroid was taped onto the front door of the store with a post-it pasted next to it.

Once again, the picture was black and white and yesterday's date as well as the initials E.M were written on the bottom right-hand corner of the frame of the Polaroid. But this time, the words written were 'Build trust'. It was illustrated with a picture of a smiling blindfolded girl clutching onto the arm of a boy who seemed to be leading her the right way. I smiled fondly at the Polaroid as it brought back memories of my childhood when everyone was so trusting of one another. However, as we grew up, reality set in and the innocence of our childhood was gone. Our trust in one another slowly diminished as well. I distractedly shook my head clear of those thoughts.

Taking down the post-it from the door, I headed back to the cab. Sliding into its back seat, I read off the post-it to the driver. He nodded at me and sped down the road.

After a few minutes, the cab slowed down and stopped beside a park. I asked the driver again if he minded waiting for me for a few minutes and he agreed to. I scrambled out of the vehicle and looked around, trying to spot a Polaroid and post-it. I bit my bottom lip nervously as I walked to the entrance of the park but I brightened up when I saw a Polaroid and post-it taped and pasted respectively onto the iron gate of the park. I rushed over to look at them.

The black and white picture on the Polaroid was simple with it being a silhouette of a couple kissing each other on the lips. The caption read 'Learn to love'. I smiled slightly as I read it. I was already learning to love the photographer of these Polaroids. He noticed all the little things that made the world seem like a better place and he was trying to better the community by sharing these things with everyone here. I diverted my attention back to the Polaroid and without a doubt, yesterday's date and the initials E.M were written on the bottom right-hand corner of the frame of the Polaroid.

I furrowed my eyebrows; I wanted to know who the photographer was. "Who are you?" I asked out loud as I stared at the initials written there. Sighing out loud in frustration, I peeled the post-it off the gate and walked on the pavement back to the cab.

"Oh! I'm so sorry!" I exclaimed as I walked into someone. I bent down for the post-it which had fluttered to the ground when I banged into the man. My cheeks had immediately turned red.

The man in the baseball cap just shook his head before continuing his way towards the parking lot just opposite the park. I then stumbled back to the cab, still feeling flustered.

Edward POV

I felt conflicted when I heard the girl ask who I was as she stared at my initials on the Polaroid. Should I reveal myself to her? I knew this would not be able to go on forever. Sooner or later, the girl would find out my identity. I sighed out loud as I came to conclusion. I whipped out a post-it and my pen and scribbled down a new address for her to head to.

I briskly followed the girl and purposely walked into her. As the post-it slipped out of her fingers, I quickly snatched it and kept it in my pocket. I had also let go of the new post-it with the different address written on it. The girl blushed as she apologized and bent down to pick up the new post-it. I shook my head in acknowledgement and kept on walking to my Volvo.

Bella POV

When the cab pulled up in front of a building, the driver spoke apologetically, "We're here. I'm afraid I can't wait for you this time. My shift is ending in a few minutes."

I smiled at him, "It's alright. Thank you anyway." I paid and tipped the driver before exiting the vehicle.

I climbed the few steps that led to the front door of the building. I was flabbergasted when I saw only a post-it with the words 'Come in' written on it, pasted on the door. Hesitantly, I pushed the door open and stepped into the building. Lined up on the walls of the room were framed photographs. I could tell that all of the photographs were professionally taken and I felt awkward standing there in my jeans and t-shirt.

I pushed my anxiety aside when I spotted three Polaroids staring at me from the wall across the room. I timidly walked over to take a closer look at them. When I looked at the Polaroids up close, I was speechless. The one on the left, middle and right was of me admiring the Polaroid at Unraveled, Voices and the park respectively. Lightheaded, I read 'Appreciate the little things' written across the bottom of the frames of all three of them. Even though I knew all the pictures on these Polaroids were of me, seeing today's date, 17 June 2010, written on the bottom right-hand corner of the Polaroid on the right, assured me that what I was seeing was real; that I was not imagining things.

I wanted to meet the photographer even more now. I wanted to know who was responsible for such beautiful photography. I wanted to know who noticed the small details around him. I wanted to know who appreciated life.

Just then, I heard footsteps reverberating off the walls of the room. The footsteps got louder as the person neared me. "My name is Edward Masen, E.M for short," My whole body froze as I realized that he was the photographer.

I cleared my throat, "My name is Isabella Swan, Bella for short." Taking in a deep breath I slowly turned around to face him.


End file.
